The Annals of otology, rhinology, and laryngology
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Ann. Otol. Rhinol. Laryngol. · Jul 2016
A Five-Year Analysis of Airway Foreign Body Management: Toward a Better Understanding of Negative Bronchoscopies.
To identify characteristics in patients who undergo positive and negative bronchoscopy for a suspected airway foreign body (AFB). ⋯ In current clinical practice, it is difficult to identify patients with an AFB without performing bronchoscopy. This results in a significant number of negative bronchoscopes. Certain elements in the history and physical exam were more common in patients who were found to have an AFB. Our preliminary data suggest that chest CT scans may be useful to decrease the number of negative bronchoscopies.